M enjoys the Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones. We can't always get through the longer stories but he will want to read some stories over and over again (like David and Goliath and Noah). He even does a pretty good job of retelling his favorite stories by looking at the pictures. We read it at breakfast, but some days are messier than others so I might just talk about an aspect of a Bible story during a morning walk. We'll usually talk about something we learn from the story and sometimes something happens during our day where I can relate it back to the story. This takes an intentional effort to be looking out for ways to talk about God.
Once I brought out a version of the Bible that is more geared toward younger kids. I would give him a choice between the Bibles for what we would read. Every child is different, but for him, he consistently chose the Jesus Storybook Bible so I eventually stopped asking if he wanted the other one. I love that this one paints the Bible as one connected story of God rescuing His people. I keep it, along with my Bible, on the table where we eat our meals. We show respect to God's Word by not putting anything on top of the Bible (our table is often a mess so this is saying something). Not sure if the boys pick up on the respect part yet but I've been surprised before on what they pick up on.
Manna:
Have a Bible out where everyone can see it
Treat the Bible like the Holy book that it is
Read God's Word often in whatever way works for your family
Some days feel a lot harder than others. If there's been less sleep for me or them or an excess of whining opening the Bible seems like one of the first things to fly out the window in order to make the day pass more quickly and easily. But I've found that opening the Bible and/or talking about the stories from it (in any form) actually makes the day and my heart more smooth. It puts our minds in the right perspective - one of being kind to each other and remembering what God has done for us and all people. It's like a breath of fresh air in this crazy world. It takes intentional effort. The more filled with Jesus and the Word I am the more I remember and recognize moments that I can bring God into. I continually ask myself, "How can I bring this topic back to being about God and what the Word says?" The more I do this, the more it becomes a habit.
The Bible can be so confusing sometimes. My husband and I are reading through the Bible in a year. We try to do it before the kids get up, which gets tricky when they wake up early. We've decided to always make Bible reading happen for us (and the boys at breakfast), no matter what. My husband and I often encounter parts that bring more questions than answers. We pray for wisdom and continue reading because we know that questioning can help our faith grow. We know that God is Right and Loving and He has a plan that we know nothing of. We may not get some answers until we get to Heaven (or we might be content with not knowing when we get there). We choose to be content with this now because we know and trust in God's character.
If you don't know the stories and what we can learn from them very well, I encourage you to start by reading and studying one story from the Bible. Pray for help in understanding, get to know it well, then introduce it to your kids. Or, depending on the age of your kids, discover and learn the story together. I don't know about for you, but my son always loves when I do things with him. There's also shows that depict Bible stories if that would fit into your family lifestyle. (Full episodes of The Donut Man and Veggie Tales are available on Youtube. My son loves the ones I've linked.)
Lord,
Fill our minds and hearts with a desire to know You more. Give us insight on when and how we can read Your Word more. Holy Spirit, make the words come alive to us. May we see Your words as better than red, ripe strawberries in the spring (Psalm 19:10-14). Make our eyes sharp for spotting opportunities to bring You into conversations with our kids.
Amen.